Offinso municipality records 1,600 teenage pregnancies

Offinso (Ash), Nov. 19, GNA – The Offinso Municipal Health Directorate recorded a total of 1,600 teenage pregnancies last year, a figure described as disturbingly high. Ms Beatrice Acquah, Municipal Health Director, said their ages ranged between 10 and 19 years. She said 267 of the pregnancies were aborted. She was speaking at a stakeholders’ forum held to draw attention to the dangers of unsafe abortion and the need for comprehensive family care at Offinso. It was jointly organized by the Offinso Health Directorate, the Centre for the Development of the People, International Pregnancy Advisory Services Ghana and the Offinso Queen Mothers Association. The goal was to help bring down unwanted pregnancies in the area. Ms Acquah said unsafe abortion was one of the leading causes of maternal deaths and was often associated with complications like bleeding, infections, perforated uterus and infertility. She cautioned women against the use of herbs and concoctions to terminate unwanted pregnancies. She said they had stepped up public health education in schools, markets and workplaces on reproductive health. She encouraged couples to accept family planning methods. Nana Amma Adowaa Akyaa, Queen of Ayensua-Kokoo, said they would provide the needed leadership in their communities to help reduce the high incidence of teenage pregnancy.